Argoi (Gallic Nobles)
The Argoi are the cream, or at least the richest, members of Keltoi society. Their position provides them with the time and resources to practice their skills and as such they are some of the finest warriors available to a Keltoi army. Description (Ar-goy 'Gallic Nobles') Blue blooded are the Argoi, but yellow bellied? No. Such men may adorn themselves with the finery of foreign lands and sup on only the finest of fare, but effete and fearful of blood they are not. They are the sons and grandsons of great men, men whose swords and spears have many times tasted blood, men whose position has been won as much by the sword as it has by the scheming use of the tongue. On the field of battle all aristocratic quarrels which these men foment are forgotten, united they stand against the foe, a sight of wonder and immense pride for any Keltoi nation. Historically elites or aristocrats were a feature of numerous Keltoi communities. Archaeology attests to the existence of high status individuals from the earliest period of the Iron Age, the Hallstatt period, and throughout the second, or La Tène, Iron Age. The main archaeological evidence for such individuals comes from the various high status burials which have been recovered across Europe. These include the 4th century BC Filottrano cemetery from Italy where men were interred with a variety of weapons and helmets whilst women were provided with mirrors and toilet sets. From Iwanowice in Poland we have Keltoi weaponry and personal decorations, namely brooches all of which attest to the high status of the occupants of the various graves. Further east at Ciumesti in Romania a cemetery dated between 240 to 130 BC was located, the most impressive burial to be recovered from this settlement being the so called "Chieftain's Burial" which contained, among other things, an iron helmet adorned with a fearsome bird of prey with moveable wings. In Western Europe we have the warrior and chariot graves of the Aisne-Marne culture of northern Gaul and the longlived Hunsrück-Eifel culture of the middle Rhine region, the burials of which date between 700 and 250BC. From the southern Rhine region comes the richly adorned Waldalgesheim burial with its gold ornaments. In Britain also, where rich burials are in fact the exception rather than the rule of the Iron Age, we find the Arras culture of eastern Yorkshire with its warrior burials and chariots, and from south eastern Britain the rich graves of the Aylesford-Swarling culture which date to the final two centuries of the Iron Age in southern Britain and contains Mediterranean and Gallic imports. The existence of nobles among Keltoi communities is directly attested to by classical authors. In describing the Gauls of Gallia Cisalpina Livy uses the terms principes and seniores to explain how tribes like the Boioi and Insubres were led, whilst Polybius uses the less explicit term leaders. The most detailed description of how Keltoi societies were governed is Caesar's De Bello Gallico. In De Bello Gallico we are told of a wide variety of nobles who lived at the time of the Gallic Wars. These include Akko of the Senones, Uerkingetorix of the Aruernoi, Dumnorix of the Aedui, Kommios of the Atrebates, Galba of the Suessiones, Piso of the Aquitanoi, Uertiko of the Neruoioi, Mandubrakios of the Trinobantes and Kingetorix of the Treueroi. Although there existed a wide variety of governments among the Gallic peoples of the 1st century BC, ranging from the dual kingship of the Eburones, to the "senate" of the Bellouakoi, to the elected magistrates of the Aedui and the sole kingship of the Atrebates, it appears that in almost all of the Gallic communities true power rested in the hands of the nobility. In some cases such men attempted to organise coups and have themselves proclaimed kings, either unsuccessfully as in the case of Dumnorix of the Aedui, Kastikos of the Sequanoi and Orgetorix of the Heluetioi, or successfully as Uerkingetorix did among the Aruernoi. It is interesting to note the presence of the word "rix" among the names of several of these individuals. Rix in Gallic means "king", but its presence in a name does not mean that every individual whose name contained rix was a king. For example Dumnorix of the Aedui was not king of that tribe, whilst Diuikiakos of the Suessiones was. Instead the inclusion of the word rix was simply part of the Keltoi naming custom and was intended to reflect the personality and qualities, either desired or real, of the individual rather than their position in society. One such late Iron Age Keltoi noble is depicted in a stone statue from Vachères in southern Gaul. He is depicted with a variety of clothing including Romani chain mail and sword as well as a Gallic shield, cloak and torc. Although he is a Gaul, his hair is cropped and face clean shaven like a Romani noble. This statue is important, not least for its artistic quality, as it reminds us that the Keltoi nobility, as well as being staunch opponents of the Romani armies, were also some of its greatest supporters. Contrary to the idea of a united Gallic resistance to Caesar, as many 19th century French historians liked to argue for, numerous nobles from the Gallic states actively collaborated and supported Caesar. They drank and ate Mediterranean foodstuffs, dressed as Romani senators and officials and likely spoke Latin as much as they did their native Keltoi dialects. For many Keltoi aristocrats of the Late Iron Age, Roma was an opportunity rather than a threat and following the conquest of Gaul many of those from the Gallic nobility went on to enjoy rewarding careers in the Romani army and administration. Category:Units Category:Units available only in EB2 Category:Aedui Category:Arverni Category:Boii Category:Romani